General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Top cancer hospitals across the country treat their patients' PAIN with "woo." [View all]The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,681 posts)for at least some conditions. It does not fall into the same "woo" category as, say, homeopathy, which involves the successive dilution of a substance that might be toxic with water until it supposedly is able to "cure" ailments - except that the process involves dilution to the point where there is nothing left but water. Some claim the water has "memory." But homeopathy has been repeatedly debunked. It's harmless as long as it doesn't take the place of some treatment that might actually work.
On the other hand, sometimes acupuncture does seem to work. I realize my own experience is only anecdotal and therefore completely unscientific and incapable of proving anything, but: a few years ago I had a sore knee - it had become very painful and I could barely go up and down stairs. I got cortisone shots a few times but they worked only temporarily. Somebody suggested acupuncture and I said, meh, that's not real medicine, it doesn't work, but they said go ahead and try it, it can't do you any harm. Since nothing else was working and my knee was really painful I decided to give it a try, but I was very skeptical. After the first treatment my knee felt better, and I thought, Ha, placebo effect. But I went back got some more treatments and the problem went away and never returned. Maybe it would have gone away on its own without any treatment. Maybe there was a placebo effect. I don't know. But I have at least retreated from my original opinion that acupuncture is pure woo.